Product Description: The
Stowaway Keyboard is the first and only full-size portable keyboard
designed for use with small handheld devices. It folds easily so it
can be carried in a suit pocket or a purse. The product is marketed
under a private-label agreement by companies like Fellowes,
Kyocera, Motorola, Palm, Sony and Targus.

Start-Up: $1.5 million in
private equity, raised in 1998 to launch the product in 1999

Sales: Approximately $15
million projected for 2003

The Challenge: Learning from
past experience to launch a profitable product

Whether your past inventing endeavors have succeeded or failed,
no doubt the experience provided you with valuable lessons. So
before you pursue your next idea, take time to evaluate what
you've learned. That strategy has certainly paid off for Bob
Olodort, who recently launched his latest product winner, a
foldable keyboard for handheld devices that sold more than 1
million units in its first year. A lifelong inventor, Olodort has
launched inventions including the Seiko Smart Label Printer 240, a
peripheral device developed in 1988 that today sells in excess of
$35 million per year. Here's how he used past experience to his
advantage:

Steps to
Success1. Think ahead. Olodort's
experience with the label printer taught him not only that
peripherals were important, but also that they attracted a lot less
competition than the products they were attached to. He used that
knowledge to brainstorm ideas for other peripherals.

Says Olodort, "I knew computers were going to get
ultrasmall, and I thought it was a matter of time before new input
technologies would be needed. I tried other solutions, voice
recognition for one, [but] I realized there was no substitute for a
full-size keyboard." Keyboards offer privacy, convenience,
familiarity and other advantages, he found. "And the full-size
part was critical. After all, no matter how small the devices get,
people's fingers aren't getting smaller. The challenge was
to make a full-size keyboard that could collapse into a small space
for portability." What paid off for Olodort was that he
started developing the folding keyboard several years before the
Palm Pilot came out, so he was able to hit the market in 1999-when
handheld devices started taking off.

2. Use a low-cost business
strategy. Olodort learned from earlier inventions, which
he primarily licensed, that it was more cost-effective not to take
on all the burdens of running a company, such as manufacturing. He
explains, "I wanted to conserve as much cash as possible in
our operations, so while we owned the original tools, we outsourced
all our production." Selling on a private-label basis also
kept his costs low. As a result, Think Outside, which has 18
employees, is a multimillion-dollar business.

3. Get outside input. One
thing Olodort learned from his previous inventions is that input
from other people keeps you on the right track. "I'm
always running informal focus groups, asking people I know what
they think about an idea," he says. "It's the only
way I'm able to understand how others will view my
creation." The old marketing theorem is that perception
becomes the customer's reality, so inventors have to know how
customers perceive their products.

4. "Wow" your
customers. Olodort's customers were companies that
could take on private-label arrangements. From his past licensing
experience, he knew it took a lot of invention to make a company
say "Wow, that's great." In terms of the Stowaway
Keyboard, he says: "I knew the 'wow' factor would
[come] from taking something that's pocket-size and magically
[opening it] into a full-size keyboard. My original model folded
many times, almost like an accordion, so it could collapse as small
as possible." Olodort knew his customers' expectations
would be high, and he didn't dare approach them until he knew
he could impress them.

5. Keep it simple. From
other ventures, Olodort learned a product won't succeed unless
it can be easily manufactured. "Though my first accordion
design wowed investors, I was having trouble sleeping, thinking it
would have too many manufacturing problems," he says. "So
I decided to go with a keyboard that only folded four times. We
still had obstacles, but they were more manageable."
Complexity can create problems for consumers, too. "The
product has to be easy to use," he continues. "Customers
have to be able to just unfold [the keyboard] without having to
connect parts or screw things together. If it's any harder than
that, they just won't buy."

6. Pay attention to
aesthetics. Olodort's inventions have mostly been
mechanical-in fact, his office is in his machine shop. He's
learned that people perceive well-designed products in a positive
light. "I feel that I have a strong aesthetic sense that adds
to the complete look of a product," he says. "Two of the
people I work with also have a keen sense of aesthetics. We're
all very proud that the Stowaway Keyboard is in the design
collection of the Museum of Modern Art [in New York]."

A HELPING HAND

PatentCafe.com has launched a new service to help
inventors introduce products. The site's Intellectual Capital
Office includes a searchable global patent database; an online
product marketability evaluation; and a list of leading providers
of prototyping services, product development and industrial design
engineers and contract manufacturing services. Most services on the
site are free, but some do require a fee. For product development
services, it's free for buyers, but not suppliers. This is a
good service to check out, whether your goal is to locate a service
provider or get a second quote.

Lessons Learned

1. Past success helps.
Companies often worry when dealing with inventors. It matters how
you behave during contract negotiations, product documentation
handoffs, new product promotion, product changes, etc. Companies
find it frustrating to deal with what they consider to be an
unreasonable inventor. While first-time inventors struggle to
overcome this, it's less of a problem for inventors with prior
successes who can offer references from former clients.

2. There are no shortcuts.
Learn what the customer wants, and design knowing customers have
high expectations. Keep working until the product is right.
There's rarely a rush to market for most successful inventors.
Take the same care with your 10th idea as with your first.

3. Control what matters
most. Inventing is an expensive process, and most
inventors can't take on all the financial commitments to get a
product to market. Outsource manufacturing-and, if possible, sales
and marketing-to people who know how to get the job done.
Concentrate on developing the product, the "wow" factor,
the ease of manufacturing and the ease of use.

4. Prepare for the worst. A
lot can go wrong in the inventing process, from a sudden market
change to a new competitor jumping into the market. Vendors can go
out of business, you can get stiffed on a big receivable, or your
design may not work. Plan for trouble, and conserve cash in as many
ways as possible. If you're prepared, it's more likely
you'll overcome the sudden adversity.

5. Anticipation plus preparation equals
success. Being first to market with the right product at
the right price is typically the best way for an inventor to enter
a market. That calls for correctly anticipating where the market is
going. So follow the market trends to see where the big boys will
play and where there's room for the little guy. Peripherals are
a good spot for inventors since big companies tend to go after big
product categories. If you predict correctly, you can cash in
big.

FREE AGENTS

Underfinanced inventors hoping to sell their products
often turn to independent sales agents, who work on a
commission-only basis. RepSource (www.vmwinc.com/repsourcehome.htm) allows you to
search for agents by product, industry or geographic location and
includes postings for reps looking for new products, as well as
companies looking for new reps. Another helpful site is the
Manufacturers' Agents National Association (www.manaonline.org), which also provides a listing
of agents looking for new lines. Log on, and you'll also find
articles on topics like how to select an agent, types of payment
arrangements and how to develop a successful agent
network.

Don Debelak is the author of Entrepreneur
magazine's Start-Up Guide #1813, Bringing Your Product
to Market. Write to him at dondebelak34@msn.com.